[BallerScriptParticipant]

Player Name (Ranking) – Player Comparison

Mohamed Bamba (#4) – Myles Turner
Bamba is a lot more polished than people think. He isn’t as raw offensively as he is said to be. Very smart team player, capable floor spacer, plays to win. Love this kid. I wouldn’t be afraid to take him over Ayton and Bagley but at this stage, I want to see how translatable his shooting is if he can expand on his post/face-up game.

Kevin Knox (#6) – Donyell Marshall (With Paul George as his ceiling)
Aside from this draft class’ big 5 (Porter Jr, Bagley, Ayton, Bamba, Doncic), I would have both Collin Sexton and Kevin Knox in that second tier. Knox is incredibly underrated in this class. He is a dynamic scoring threat in transition and an active and effective defender as far as what I’ve seen. I can easily see him becoming a key 15 and 10 guy who’s going to get his share from tip-ins, lobs and spot up threes. He’s the perfect player to play off of star players such as Russell Westbrook and John Wall.

Trevon Duval (#10) – Rajon Rondo
For Duval I have seen comparisons to Derrick Rose, Kyrie Irving and Damian Lillard. These are a bit ridiculous. Duval is a hyper-athletic guard with an NBA body. He has the speed, the strength and the tools to compete at an NBA level. Playmaking is a large strength of his and this is where my comparison starts. Duval is a flashy playmaker just like Rondo and an athlete (Actually better than Rondo) around the rim. Duval does struggle with his jumper which looks stiff but there is still hope for him to improve in this area.

Hamidou Diallo (#11) – Shabazz Muhammad (With DeMar DeRozan as his ceiling)
Diallo is a ridiculous highlight reel athlete much like my comparisons for him. His range is his downfall but he has a developing mid-range game which is where I start to see that DeMar DeRozan potential. Diallo’s work ethic will be the determining factor to whether he is an 11ppg bench scorer like Bazz or a skilled athlete like DeRozan which he has shown flashes of with similar footwork and slashing.

Troy Brown (#13) – Evan Turner
This is a pretty common player comparison for Troy Brown. I can see Brown turning out to be an improved shooter over Turner and Turner appears to be slightly faster and more vertical than Brown. Over than those two things, Brown much like Turner is a tall guard who can make the right play and take over point when it is necessary. I like brown as a 12/5/5 guy.

Robert Williams (#15) – Amir Johnson
This isn’t the most accurate comparison but its one that I think works better than others. Williams doesn’t have the 3 ball like Amir does and has better interior defense but the style in which they play around the rim and my projected NBA production from Williams lines up well with Amir Johnson. Williams could definitely exceed these expectations but I can easily see him being a highly effective energy big that gets you easy transition buckets and putbacks.

Rui Hachimura (#23) – Jerami Grant
Rui is definitely growing on me. Everytime I watch footage of him a just can’t help but see the Jerami Grant comparison. Both are guys who can play both forward positions, shot-blocking perimeter players, can get up there (Rui not as well as Grant) to score on lobs and in transition. Hachimura projects to be a great 3 and D glue guy and I wouldn’t be surprised if teams end up reaching on him just for his role-player potential.

Thanks for checking it out. I’d love to hear some of your early comparisons for some other prospects. It’s a very exciting class.

[HitsterParticipant]

 I like Amir for Robert Williams, I thought McDyess and Kemp were too generous a comparison for him personally.

I don’t personally see the Turner/Bamba likeness, Turner is more a finesse big with a legit 3 point range. I don’t see Bamba being as good offensively as Turner but I’d say Bamba has a lot more defensive potential.

 

[Lotto StudParticipant]

 The Duval-Rondo comparison seems a bit off to me because Rondo is nowhere near as athletic as Duval, and he’s an elite passer.

[OhCanada-Participant]

 Good job on the list. The only one I dont agreee with is Kevin Knox to Donyell Marshall. Marshall had no lateral quickness but was long enough to contest shots defensively, was an excellent rebounder and offensively was a spot up shooter that was able to post up smaller defenders. I think Knox is a much better athlete all around and even though Marshall was likely always playing around 215-225 Knox doesnt seem to have the same core strength as Donyell. Knox also has the potential to be a much more versatile scorer.

[holefillers1Participant]

 I’m not sold on Duval.  In the games I watched his speed didn’t jump out at me.  He seems a lot slower with the ball in his hands.  He is a good passer though.  I could see him playing off the ball more at Duke.

Knox is interesting.  I watched Kentucky play for the first time so I had to identify all these new prospects on the court.  Knox was a guy that continually caught my eye.  He moves around a lot on the offensive end and has nice touch and a decent handle.  If he can D it up and get to the line he will go very early in the draft.

I like the Amir Johnson comp for Williams.  Maybe he can be used like Clint Capela at some point. 

 

 

[whiteflashParticipant]

 Shabazz Muhammed isn’t a highlight reel athlete, he just has a freakish wingspan. Outside of him bullying highschool kids he hasn’t done much. Honestly, all of your comparisons are pretty off.

[Author]

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